Fixing Hot And Cold Spots In Your Home: 6 Ways

Many of us experience uneven temperatures in our home – a chilly downstairs with a hot upstairs, for example, or a particular room that just won’t get hot or cool enough.

Rather than dealing with it by adding or removing clothing, it’s a good idea to tackle the problem at the roots. Let’s look at some common causes of uneven heating and cooling in your home.

Reasons For Uneven Heating And Cooling

Uneven heat and cooling in your home is typically caused by three factors (on its own or in tandem): inadequate airflow within your HVAC system, insufficient insulation, or air leaks in your home.

More specifically, causes of hot and cold spots include:

• Poor airflow between the furnace and registers
• Leaky or poorly installed ductwork
• A mis-sized HVAC system
• Drafts around windows and doorways between conditioned and unconditioned spaces
• A thermostat giving inaccurate readings (often due to placement)

As you might imagine, these problems aren’t always easy to isolate without the right tools and training. A well-trained heating professional can help you identify the real cause of your HVAC issues and determine the best course of action to take to solve the problem.

6 Uneven Home Temperature Solutions

If you’re experiencing unwelcomed hot and cool spots in your home, here are some possible solutions a pro might suggest, in order from the simplest to the most complex:

1. Close vents in under-used rooms – If you have a forced-air system, redirect warm air to rooms you use most.
2. Check your air filter – In a forced-air HVAC system, a blocked air filter will make it difficult for your blower to force air through your ductwork; inhibited airflow means less warm air reaches your living space. Replace your HVAC air filter before moving on to more substantial measures.
3. Air seal your home – Caulk leaky window and door frames, install door sweeps, and add weatherstripping to door jambs to reduce drafts.
4. Check and seal your ducts – As much as 15 percent of the air you paid to heat could be lost on the way to vents via leaks in your ductwork. Consider investing in a professional ductwork inspection – since many leaks are located behind walls and in hard-to-reach spaces, it’s not a DIY job.
5. Consider a zone controller – A zone controller allows you to independently manage temperatures in different sections of your home by assigning each its own thermostat. If your heating system can accommodate a zone controller, it could solve an uneven heating problem (contact us to learn more).
6. Add supplemental heating/cooling – Consider adding a ductless mini-split heat/AC unit to your home to deal with problem areas. Today’s mini-splits do double duty, keeping your rooms cool in the summer and warmer during the fall and winter and taking some of the pressure off your home’s central HVAC system.

Experiencing uneven heat in your home? Woodruff Energy’s expert technicians can help. Contact us today to learn more about HVAC service in service in southern New Jersey!